F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Baseball team won the 15th West Asian Baseball cup after thrashing their Palestinian counterpart in the final by a leading margin of 11-03 at Pakistan Sports Complex here on Wednesday.
Pakistan has also qualified for Asian Games and Asian Championship after lifting the title.
Pakistani captain Faqir Hussain stood as the top scorer (03 runs) of the match, Arsalan Jamshaid, Muhammad Hussain, and Fazil Khan scored 02 runs each, while Shahzad Ahmad and Muhammad Younas scored 01 runs each.
The Palestine team only managed to get 03 runs and was declared the runner-up of the championship. Federal Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination Ehsan-re-Rehman Mazari and US ambassador Donald Blome witnessed the final and distributed medals and trophies among the winners.
Both teams have qualified for the Asian Baseball Championship in Taiwan, a qualifying tournament for the Baseball World Cup.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh by 3-1 for the third position in the championship. Amila, Sindon and Roshan scored one run each for Sri Lanka, while Muhammad Musabbaral scored the only run from Bangladesh.
Palestinian baseball team visits HEC: The baseball team of the State of Palestine, currently in Pakistan for the 15th West Asia Baseball Cup, visited the Higher education Commission (HEC) and held a meeting with Chairman HEC Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed.
The visiting team was accompanied by the First Secretary Embassy of the State of Palestine in Islamabad Mr. Nader al-Turk, while Executive Director HEC Dr. Shaista Sohail and other senior HEC officers were also present in the meeting.
Addressing the team, the Chairman HEC referred to the 15th West Asia Baseball Cup final between Pakistan and Palestine and underlined the importance of sports activities for youth. He said that HEC/Pakistan University Sports board is committed to providing all possible sports facilities to student players.
Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed informed the dignitaries that an international Vice Chancellors conference of the Islamic world universities will be held in the near future. He added that Islamic countries are considering launching a fully-funded scholarship programme for Muslim youth.
He said, “We feel the pain of Palestinian brethren and our leadership always does whatever possible for the Palestinians.” In his remarks on this occasion, Mr. Nader al-Turk appreciated the Pakistani nation for extending support to the Palestinian cause. “We acknowledge Pakistan’s continuous support to the State of Palestine,” he underscored.
He said that the Palestinians in Pakistan do not feel like foreigners, but that they feel at home thanks to the affection and respect they receive from the Pakistanis.
He appreciated the Palestinian team for qualifying for the final.
It is pertinent to mention here that seven teams, including Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Palestine, Sri Lanka, and Nepal took part in the West Asia Cup held in Islamabad. Pakistan sealed the victory over Sri Lanka by 16-1, whereas Palestine defeated Bangladesh by 14-3 in the semifinals. (APP)
